Every Horse Needs A Cowboy
by VINAI
Summary: Today was supposed to be like every other. And it was. Except for one little, itty bitty thing. . . Jack wasn't human. *Set in 2k16 reboot!* Plz R&R! (I DONT OWN THEM!) Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** _Merry Christmas everybody! I hope everyone's having a wonderful holiday! I'm sorry I'm getting this out so late but the idea just sorta hit me after that last period of writer's block so. Yeah. Anyways, I hope you enjoy and please drop a review on your way out! Also, plz let me know if y'all want me to continue this! I already have a second chapter written, but I won't post it unless y'all want to see more. Thank you!_

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 **Every Horse Needs A Cowboy**

Mac woke up to the feeling of warm sunlight streaming through his window. He scrunched his eyes shut a moment later, not quite ready to wake up and face the day yet. It was a Saturday anyway and Matty felt generous enough to give the team some well deserved time off.

He turned over on his side facing the bedroom door. Blocking everything else out and embracing the warmth enveloping him. Mac sighed contently and allowed the wonderful abyss of sleep to pull him under-

 _Riiiiiiiiinnnng. Riiiiiiiiiinnnng. Riiiiiiinnnng._

"Oh come on!" Mac groaned pulling the blankets up over his head. Who the hell would be calling him anyway? Jack already said he was going to be busy and wouldn't bother him (even though that's totally not the case because Jack could never honestly _bother_ him even if he tried.) And he knew Riley and Bozer had plans as well.

So he opted to just let it go to voicemail. If it was something important and they called again, he would pick up.

A frustrated sigh deflated his diaphragm when the _damn_ _stupid_ phone wouldn't stop _ringing_. He was really hoping it was just another annoying robo call or something. But apparently whoever was trying to reach him was adamant. Mac was sure his voicemail barely even played before the person was redialing again.

Lazily, he groped for his phone on his nightstand. He brought the phone to his ear, not bothering to look at the screen to see who called.

"Hello?" Mac answered, his voice rough from sleep.

" _Hi_." A friendly yet professional female voice replied back on the other end. " _Is this Mr. Angus MacGyver?_ "

"Yes. . ." Mac said cautiously as he sat up against his headboard, on edge. "Who is this?"

" _I'm Dorothy Williams. I'm the manager here at Green Meadow Stables._ " She explained easily. Mac was going to ask why she was calling, but she continued anyway.

" _I'm calling to notify you that your horse seems to be acting out in his stall. We've tried calming him down ourselves, but he isn't responding well. He almost kicked one of my stable hands when we tried to get a hold of him. I would greatly appreciate it if you could come down immediately before he does some real damage._ "

In a daze, Mac answered. "Um, yeah. Ok, I'll. . . be there as soon as I can." He grabbed a piece of paper and hastily scribbled down the name of the stable. He'll look up the address later. "Thanks for calling me."

" _You're very welcome, sir._ " Dorothy said politely and ended the call.

Mac pulled his phone away from his ear and stared at the screen for a _long_ time. Green Meadow Stables? Horse? Dorothy Williams? None of that rang a single marble in his head. Could it possibly be another Angus MacGyver? A wrong number?

Either way, he felt like he needed to go check it out. Mac couldn't explain why, but the urge to go became stronger the more he thought about it. Within minutes Mac was in his Jeep and driving to the location, address plugged into his GPS.

Surprisingly, it didn't take that long to get there. A unique rock wall surrounded the property's outline. A white picket fence lined the long drive on either side. He pulled in through the huge wrought iron gates that had the stable's initials in the center. The stable was just located on the outside of the city surrounded by acres of rolling hills covered in lush green grass. Tall oak trees littered the property in various sizes and clusters.

After driving down the long windy driveway, Mac came up on three red barns. Behind the barns were two 100'x200' covered riding arenas. People were bustling about, some with horses in tow while others carried tack to and fro. To his right was an old yellow house with a stained wrapped around porch. A couple dogs ran around outside of the barns, barking noisily upon his arrival. They quieted down as soon as he parked and came bounding over with tails wagging to greet him as soon as he opened his door.

"Milo! Sam! Stop that and leave him alone." An older brunette lady of about Jack's age came walking over then. Her shiny hair was done up in a low ponytail. She wore casual clothes, but an air of authority surrounded her.

The two Blue Heeler's immediately obeyed and ran off with the other dogs. The woman then extended her hand with a pleasant smile.

"Hi, I'm Dorothy Williams." She introduced herself, brown eyes shining with warmth. "I'm assuming your Mr. MacGyver?"

"That's me." Mac smiled back and shook her hand, silently assessing his surroundings. He was still expecting someone to jump out and explain away all his bewilderment. "But please. Just call me Mac."

"Alright then. Well, if you'll follow me, I'll show you where your horse is being kept."

Mac nodded and followed Dorothy into the first barn. The barn had twenty stalls on each side with two tack rooms on each end with adjoined feed room. Two wash areas sat in the middle of the barn on each side facing one another. The flooring was cobblestone with drains in the center aisle for run off. The stalls were all custom made with lightly stained wood and black metal accents with sliding stall doors. Each stall had a mountain of fresh fluffy pine shavings for bedding with an attached 50' run for the horses to go out if they wanted. Most stalls were already occupied with stunning horses of all sizes and colors.

"Since I called you he's calmed down a bit. But he's still pacing rapidly and pinning his ears at anyone who goes near him." Dorothy told him as they neared the end of the barn. Mac noticed two other people standing around one particular stall. They started to walk away as they approached.

"Hopefully maybe you'll have better luck."

She stopped and gestured to their destination. Sure enough, the horse was clearly pissed to hot hell. Nickering consistently and throwing his head violently in agitation while pacing around and around in his stall, going faster with each lap. But that's not what really caught his eye.

Inside the stall was a very tall, gorgeous black Overo paint. His mane was half black and half white while his tail was completely black. The muscular horse had two white socks on his hind legs and a white stocking on his right front leg. White ears twitched at every little noise. The stout paint had a thick white blaze painting the center of his big black head and had a white spot over his left eye.

When their gazes finally met, Mac was taken back not by the sudden pause in the powerful animal's pacing, but by his eyes. They were chocolate brown.

A very _familiar_ chocolate brown.

Mac could feel himself pale. _Oh hell no. No way. . ._

"Mac?" Dorothy's worried voice filtered through his mind. "Are you alright?" Mac saw Dorothy switch her gaze from him to the horse a few times. Obviously she wasn't the only one shocked by the sudden change in behavior from the paint.

Mac managed to swallow thickly and nod distractedly. His baby blues never once wavering from the familiar gaze in front of him. The paint was doing the same, standing stock still with ears pricked forward in attention. Mac turned to the brunette woman.

"Could. . . Could I have a moment alone? With him, I mean." Mac gestured to the now silent creature behind him with a small jerk of his thumb. Dorothy gave them both a strange look but backed off and went out of the barn. Looking around, Mac found that he was now the only one in there.

Taking a deep breath, Mac carefully unlatched the stall door and slid it open. The paint, sensing Mac's wariness, slowly backed up to the wall. Giving Mac more than enough room to back away if he chose to. Mac kept his eyes on him the whole time, just now noticing the snug-fitting brown leather halter on the large horse's face, the gold metal name plate on the cheek band glinting brightly in the sunlight. Mac took hesitant steps over to the paint and gently put his hand on the halter. In turn the paint softly lifted his nose into Mac's hand in kind. The blonde felt some of his anxiety melt away at the gesture.

That is, until he read the little name plate on the left side of the halter's cheek band.

 _JACKPOT_

The single name was engraved with capitalized scripted letters, proudly proclaiming it. Mac didn't quite understand _why_ exactly it seemed to take his breath away. It was only a _name_. No need to get all worked up about it. Besides, the tag says _Jackpot_. Not _Jack_.

But the similarity was _just_ too hard to come by.

The tall paint (sorry, _Jackpot_ ) snorted, startling Mac out of his reverie with a jolt. Mac could've sworn he saw amusement in those bright eyes. But then again he could've been imagining it too. Mac sighed and ran a hand through his hair. Maybe he partied too hard last night and this was all a dream his brain conjured up while sleeping off a hangover? It was certainly possible, but also very unlikely that he would act so irresponsible. It was hard for even _Jack_ to get him to act like that.

Movement got his attention this time. Instinctively, Mac flattened himself against the wall when Jackpot moved away from him. Mac thought he was going to walk outside, but then the paint continued to face him. Staring him down as if asking him to do something. _Say_ something. However, Mac didn't do a thing the whole time. He was still stuck in his head about how all of this shit even happened and, more importantly, what _caused_ it to happen.

Seeing no other option, Jackpot made his way back over to the still blonde. He made sure to keep his distance though, giving Mac more than enough leeway to escape should he choose. The stunning paint lowered his head slightly, softly making contact with Mac's hand. Mac flinched, expecting something more dangerous to come from such a large creature. Or maybe it was his nerves with the whole situation. Whatever the reason, it was enough to make Jackpot pause in his approach. Waiting for the blonde to give his approval before doing anything more.

Mac watched him intently. His gaze bored into the paint's. Emotions and questions flashed behind his blue eyes, but disappeared too quickly to identify them.

"J-Jack?" He asked quietly, voice barely above a whisper. "Is that. . . _you_?"

For a split second, Mac felt embarrassment start to filter through. This was a _horse_. His partner was _not a horse_. _Obviously_ he must've hit his head on something on the way in because he was _clearly_ delirious. Watch. Any minute now his partner will call and ask him what he's doing and if he wanted to go catch a movie or something. Just like he always did.

But nothing like _that_ happened ( _of_ _course_ ). Because that would just be too good to be true.

No. Instead Mac got the surprise of his life when the beautiful paint tossed his handsome head with a sharp whinny, his front leg striking the ground just off to Mac's left. The blonde gasped and shrunk back down to the floor in surprise (and possibly fear). Adrenaline pumped through his system. Mac watched with wide eyes as the horse spun around fast enough to get whiplash and bolted out into the attached run. He saw dust fly up in the air as Jackpot made another sharp turn and came hauling ass back into the stall full speed. He skid to a stop mere _inches_ from the stall door.

After Mac got his pounding heart under some sort of control, he shot a glare at the horse. Though Mac was sure the paint could clearly see the barely suppressed fear in his eyes.

"What the hell was that for?" Mac tried to demand, but his voice came out sounding more like a fearful squeak instead.

Jackpot simply nickered happily and walked over to where Mac still sat, lowering his head enough to look the blonde in the eye. There was no denying the amusement sparkling there in those brown orbs. Mac let out a pent up breath and lowered his forehead to Jackpot's. He closed his eyes and gently gripped the cheek bands of the halter in his hands. The paint's warm breath warming his belly with each exhale.

"Oh my god."


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** _Heya peeps! I just wanna say thank you to those of you who left feedback for the first chapter! I really appreciate it so keep it up! Anyhooz, I'm not SUPER happy with this chapter, but after rewriting it 20x over, I finally decided to just go with it. So I hope you still enjoy it and plz review! Thank you and Happy Almost New Year! Lol._

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 _ **Chapter 2:**_

The next day, Mac decided to call Matty and ask if he could have the week off to work on some personal projects. Thank god Matty was in a good mood when he asked because she barely batted an eye over it and even said to call her if Mac decided he needed more time. Mac was tempted to use it, but quickly decided against it. Mac was sure he could figure this out within a week. How hard could it be to figure out why his partner suddenly swapped from a human to a horse? It couldn't be that hard. Maybe he just needed to kiss a frog or something, or accomplish a dangerous mission designed to test every one of his abilities in order to switch him back. Easy peasy.

A soft nicker brought him out of his head. He looked over and saw he was in front of Jack's stall. Huh. He didn't even remember walking in.

"Hey, Big Guy." Mac greeted as he opened the door. The paint backed up enough to allow him in before gently nuzzling the bonde's chest. Mac smiled and wrapped his arms around the paint's large head.

"Too bad you can't exactly talk." Mac muttered tiredly as he rested his cheek against Jack's forehead. "I'd love some answers right now as to why you are the way you are."

He felt Jack push his head in further against Mac's chest, as if trying to say, _So_ _would_ _I_. _But_ _we'll_ _get_ _through_ _this_. Mac sighed and just enjoyed the fact that at least Jack was actually _here_. Even if this was some crazy alternate reality going on.

"Hey, excuse me? Could you take your horse out to the pasture? We have to clean the barn and we don't allow the horses in here while we're doing that."

Mac looked up to see a snooty looking teen standing there impatiently with a bucket of what looked like grooming supplies. Behind her, a group of mixed age people were gathering horses from stalls and mops from the cleaning room.

"Oh, yeah, um. Sure." Mac said as he pulled away from the tall paint. He looked around for a lead rope or something, but the snooty teen beat him to it.

"Looking for this?" She asked moodily, holding out a long jet black lead with a gold clip. Mac nodded and grabbed it from her with a nod of thanks. A second later, he had it clipped on the halter's ring and led the paint out of the stall. He paused on his way out and turned back to the teen.

"Uhh," he started awkwardly. "Which way is the pasture located?"

With a sigh, the teen pointed a manicured nail in the opposite direction he was going. "Over there. Past the arena, make a right. You can't miss it." She answered shortly and immediately went back to cleaning, ignoring him completely.

Mac shared a look with Jack. The paint glared at the teen's back and pinned his ears with a stomp of his foot. Mac chuckled and walked in the desired direction. Sure enough, the pasture was located right where the teen said it was. And boy it was absolutely beautiful.

40 acres of rolling hills spread the expanse before them. Tall trees scattered the property and a giant shimmering lake sat idly in the back of the pasture. Horses were roaming the space lazily, or grazing contently together. Some looked up as they approached the gate. Mac unlooped the chain around the gate and opened it wide enough for Jack to fit through. He closed and locked the gate again once he was through and led Jack a short distance a way before unclipping the lead line, draping it across the fence post.

"Ok. You can go. . ." he gestured vaguely. "Do whatever it is you do."

Jack snorted and pranced over to him, gently pushing Mac in the direction of the pond. Mac protested a little, but eventually allowed Jack to lead him. Even if the form was completely bizarre and still surprising, this was still his partner. And he trusted his partner with his life.

Once they reached the bank, Jack gave a soft nudge to Mac's back.

"Uh, no." Mac instantly backed up to stand beside the paint's shoulder, which was _way_ above his head. "No that's quite alright, Jack. I don't feel like swimming today. You go ahead."

Jack rolled his eyes and gestured as best he could to his back. Mac obviously wasn't catching on to the weird head toss so Jack had to try a different tactic. Looking around, Jack spotted a stump a short distance away from them. _Bingo_. Jack turned slightly and bumped his nose into the small of Mac's back. Mac allowed Jack to lead him again. When they reached the stump, Mac looked back questioningly. Jack continued to bump him until Mac eventually stood up on the Mac was on top, Jack pulled around right beside it and stood still. Mac's eyes widened a little.

"Wait. . . are you?" Mac trailed off, his gaze changing from Jack's back to the paint's face. Jack nickered quietly and tossed head again. Mac shook his head, apprehensive. Jack backed up slightly and bent his head around, bumping Mac's leg a little to grab his attention. The expression of _Trust_ _me_ was so apparent in his big brown eyes, Mac couldn't find it himself to deny his partner.

Besides, he couldn't really even remember the last time he got on a horse out of his own pure will.

Mind made up, Mac thought about the best way to get up on Jack's back without seriously hurting himself, or Jack. Even though the stump added an extra three feet to his already tall frame, Jack's back was _still_ up past his chest. He knew he could always just ask Jack to lay down or something and get on that way, but the stubborn part of his brain wanted to figure out a way.

Mac carefully laid a hand down on Jack's back, feeling the soft fur beneath his palm. Jack continued to stand still, his long white ears often flicking in his direction. Mac remembered Jack telling him how to mount a horse bareback at some point during one of their many conversations of Jack's family life. It took him a moment to remember the hand placement before he attempted to do it. Mac mentally counted to three before jumping up on Jack's back and swinging his body over. Jack helped him by nudging his leg over when the blonde struggled a bit. Once he was on, Mac slowly sat up and scooted forward right behind Jack's withers. A small laugh bubbled out of him. Child-like joy warmed Mac's chest as he ran a hand through the silky, medium length locks of Jack's mane between his fingers. Every strand of hair was perfectly folded over the left side of his the paint's neck, not a single one out of place.

"Well, that was a little crazy." Mac chuckled from his high perch above the ground. Jack nickered deep in his throat and took a small step forward just to test the waters. He felt Mac tense a teeny bit, but otherwise remained relaxed. Satisfied with the results, Jack continued on.

Jack made sure to keep to himself and stay away from the other horses. Even though they all seemed to respect and already sense the leadership and _I_ _don't_ _do_ _bullshit_ vibe Jack gave off. The paint took a small trail down through the more woodsy part of the pasture. Warm sunlight dappled through the thick green canopies. Birds chirped and chattered from above while squirrels darted from tree to tree as they walked further and further away from the stable. Out here, the noise from the outside world dimmed dramatically. The only filler being that of nature and Jack's own footsteps on the soft earth. Mac noticed Jack always kept an ear on him while the other flicked at any and all noise.

The trail began to slope slowly and the big oaks turned to tall pines. The trails and forest floor quickly became littered with pine needles and the air smelt sweetly of Christmas. Jack slowed his pace slightly as the decline of the trail pushed Mac forward a bit. The paint was careful to watch his step and made sure to keep his footing as he crossed the little obstacles in his way. Once all hazards were cleared, Jack resumed his normal pace through the woods. It wasn't long before Mac's ears perked up at the sound of water running.

Jack took another careful turn around a bend in the trail before revealing the peaceful setting. Mac couldn't help but be in awe. A wide creek emerged from the hill before them and ran over the trail. Moss covered rocks of various sizes lay splayed out around and in the crystal water. Bright green trees created a wall on either side of the creek. The bright sunlight illuminated the whole scene in a beautiful shadow.

"Wow." Mac breathed, smelling the wet moss and sweet scent of fresh water in the air. "It's beautiful, Jack."

The black and white paint pulled up next to a large rock. Mac got the hint and gracefully swung himself over Jack's back and landed on the rock. He hopped down and made his way to the bank of the rushing water. It was only about a foot deep, maybe a little higher in some spots. Behind him, Mac saw Jack toss his head and trot off into the cool water without hesitation. Jack made his way out to the center of the creek before whinnying playfully and pawing the water hard enough to send droplets flying all the way to where Mac was sitting. The blonde laughed at Jack's antics.

Encouraged by Mac's amusement, Jack kicked up his heels and galloped down the creek. Water splashed and soaked any nearby rocks as he flew by. Mac watched in awe at the show of power and strength the paint displayed. He was _fast_. And Jack made it look as if it took no effort at all to get to that speed with a snap of a finger. His muscled bunched and expanded with each lengthy stride. Mane and tail were both flying in the wind like banners with his black head held high in joy, nostrils flaring with each lungful of air.

When Jack decided he had enough, he slowed back down to a trot and made his way back over to Mac. His sharp Overo patterned coat was dripping with water. Sides heaving as he finally caught a breather. Jack shook himself off like a dog and snorted water out of his nose. Mac chuckled and walked out to him, carefully picking out a twig that somehow managed to get itself tangled in the paint's forelock. Once it was out, Jack walked back over to the boulder and allowed Mac to climb back on. As soon as Mac was secure they both made their way back to the barn with the setting sun lighting the landscape through the thick foliage.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** _Hello, everybody! Fair warning, this chapter turns kinda cheesy. Don't say I didn't warn you! Lol. Seriously though. It's cheesy. At least in my opinion. But the end is fluffy! Lol :D Anyway, hope you enjoy and plz review! Thanks!_

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 ** _Chapter_ _3:_**

It's been almost a week since Mac woke up to this alternate reality, Quantum Leap-ish. . . thing. As he started to kind of predict, he did end up calling Matty for some more time off, seeing as he hadn't found a way to change his partner back. But as strange as it may be, Mac's found it to be a common occurance now to come to the stable everyday. And with each day, Mac's found items he's apparently bought for his "horse".

Like for example, a fancy all matching red leather saddle tack set with intricate floral designs and antique finish on the trail saddle. The brow band of the headstall had matching designs and quilt stitching on the reins. He hadn't known about it until he snooped around in the tack room and found the gleaming clean tack set with his last name plastered above it on a rack. To say he was surprised would've been an understatement. Mac had also found a black pair of performance boots stowed away behind the saddle on a hook and a grooming bucket full of supplies as well.

The blonde's already tried everything on Jack of course (he couldn't help but feel a little bit like a kid in a toy store). It was a little embarrassing but also kind of funny trying to figure out how everything went, what went where and the like. He was sure Jack would've been laughing with him if he could. Thankfully though, he had managed to get everything on correctly and, after double checking to make sure nothing was too tight or too loose, he and Jack went on their first true trail ride.

Well. . . more like riding lesson. Horse taught, by the way, for Jack had taught him the paces at Mac's own speed. It took a bit for Jack to encourage Mac to try again after a couple near-falls that had the blonde clinging on the Jack's neck for dear life. Which wasn't easy considering Mac was almost six feet off the ground when on Jack's back. But eventually Mac gained his balance beautifully and before he knew it, Jack was galloping full speed down one of the many trails. It was so exhilarating. The ground below them became nothing more than a brown blur. The wind whipped through his hair like a vicious hurricane and brought reflexive tears to his eyes.

All too soon, the tall paint slowly came down in speed and did a slow jog the rest of the way to the creek. His sides were heaving heavily and his nostrils were flared. Sweat lathered the paint's nec, body and chest behind the breast collar. Enhancing his sharp coloring.

Jack snorted and shook out his mane when he reached the bank. Mac climbed down and sat on the ground leaning against his partner's leg while Jack grabbed a drink. He ran a hand through his hair to help smooth it out some. Heat radiated off of Jack's body in waves. Occasionally, Jack would pause in his drinking and look around before going back to drinking again. Mac decided they were probably going to be there a while so he got comfy against his partner's leg and leaned his head back, closing his eyes. He knew Jack would notify him to anything strange.

Mac didn't know how long he rested his eyes for when he felt a sudden jump from the paint. He could feel Jack's muscles in his legs go rigid, his whole body stock still. Mac immediately opened his eyes and surveyed the area. He couldn't see anything, but obviously something was bothering Jack.

"Jack? What's-Whoa!" Mac exclaimed in surprise when Jack abruptly whipped around and pushed Mac to his feet all in one easy move. Jack snugged Mac close to his shoulder, placing himself between the blonde and whatever lay on the other side of the creek. His brown eyes stayed glued to the other side of the creek, ears pricked forward on high alert. Mac moved around to see for himself what it was. Jack quickly snapped his head around and pinned his ears slightly, placing Mac right back at his shoulder. Mac didn't try to move again.

Nothing happened for a few solid minutes.

Mac waited on baited breath to see what would happen. Had Jack not been breathing, Mac would've thought his partner had been turned to stone. Mac really tried not to get anxious about it, but the overall situation made it hard. He and Jack couldn't exactly _communicate_ what was going through their minds, so it was mainly all up to reading body language. Mac sighed softly and tried to follow his partner's lead and listen. As much as Mac wanted to go and investigate, he didn't feel like risking getting nipped in the arm or something next for not listening. Jack didn't seem like he was in the mood to play right now.

After what seemed like an hour of waiting, Jack visibly relaxed a notch and calmly walked the other direction back towards the trail they came from. The paint maneuvered Mac in front of him, Jack's warm muzzle keeping constant pressure on the middle of the blonde's back as he pushed him along.

Of course something bad had to happen _right_ as they let their guard down.

Their only warning was a small snap of a twig. Jack's ears immediately pricked and his head snapped up. His body was rigid again. Mac hesitantly stepped back to Jack's shoulder. The paint started to nicker nervously. His head came around and gave Mac a rough shove away from him. Mac stumbled and fell back right as a large feral dog leaped out of brush with a hostile roar. Mac's eyes widened in fear and he scrambled back as fast as he could. He didn't recognize the dog as one of Dorothy's. The black dog snarled dangerously. Spit dripping from a jaw full of sharp teeth.

"Jack!" Mac cried out when the dog geared up to pounce him.

A sharp whinny sliced through the air. Jack barreled into the canine a second later, sending it tumbling a safer distance away. Jack took the chance to visually look Mac over and gave a soft nudge to the blonde's chest.

The dog growled deeply in its' throat and struggled to his feet, blood sluggishly bleeding from a cut on his brow. He shook off is coat and charged the pair once again. Jack used his own body to shield his partner. The feral beast drove it's fangs deep into the paint's neck. Jack reared up, the wild dog dangling from his jugular. Blood began to coat Jack's neck and ran down all over the dog's head. The paint screamed in pain.

"JACK!" Mac screamed. He quickly fished out his pocket knife and flipped out the largest blade. When the moment struck, Mac stabbed the knife deep into the dog's chest right above its heart. The dog gurgled, blood filling up his mouth and oozing from the corners before letting go. His lifeless body falling limply to the ground.

Mac turned his attention to the paint once it was obvious the dog wasn't getting back up again. Poor Jack was shaking violently, his brown eyes huge and pained. Blood ran freely down his throat and down his chest to drop to the ground below. Jack swallowed thickly and more blood oozed out. Mac cursed and took off his jacket. He balled it up and pressed it to the wound. The paint winced and nickered softly, his head coming to push into Mac's chest. Jack's muscles quivered with pain.

"I know, Big Guy." Mac whispered, his voice shaking slightly. He closed his eyes and rested his head atop Jack's. "I know. It's gonna be ok. I promise you'll be ok."


End file.
